For weeks, tens of thousands of indigenous Bolivians have led an uprising against the government, demanding the nationalization of the country's energy resources and an overhaul of the constitution. Last night, President Carlos Mesa went on national television and announced he was stepping down. We go to Cochabamba, Bolivia to speak with Jim Shultz of The Democracy Center.

The Supreme Court ruled Monday that the federal government can prosecute the sick for the medical use of marijuana, even in states where it is legal. In a 6-3 ruling, the court agreed with the Bush administration that the regulation of controlled substances, including marijuana, is the province of Congress without exception.

Earlier this week Ryan Johnson and his wife crossed into Canada to escape serving in the military. Over the past month they have traveled across the United States and then into Canada with help from a new underground railroad that has formed to help war resisters. During a stop in New York, Johnson joined us in our studio to explain why he is heading to Canada.

Marcia e-mails to say do not miss the final segment and I'd agree with that. If you only have time today for one segment, pick "Exclusive: Another U.S. War Resister Flees to Canada To Avoid Fighting in Iraq Via The New 'Underground Railroad.'"

But, remember, the purpose of "Rathergate" and "Koran Flushgate" was to discombobulate and intimidate the media into not printing or televising anything overtly critical of the Bush regime. Rove cleverly knows how to use the media to cannibalize itself. All he has to do is toss them some red herring and they are off like jackals, devouring each other, while the crimes of the White House go unnoticed and unreported. Furthermore, reporters, editors and publishers become even MORE intimidated about printing or airing a story critical of the Bush Administration.

It is a technique worthy of the mob reigning supreme over the modern technological media, in combination with the fear that the media barons have of offending their corporate benefactors in the White House, Republican Congress and GOP judiciary.

The Mainstream Media seems to have abandoned all common sense.

Newsweek didn't cause any riots; the Christian Crusade against the "Infidel" led by Bush is what caused the riots. The record of humiliating, brutalizing, torturing and killing Muslims is as clear as the barbaric photos that came out of Abu Ghraib (and there are others, apparently even more malicious, that the Bush Administration won't release to the public).

The thugs in the White House know how to throw the press into a hysterical fit of irrelevance. But the truth is that Karl Rove could just gently blow and the White House Press Corpse, with the exception of Helen Thomas, would fall over.

The Busheviks don't need to beat up too heavily on the D.C. press. Most of them just want to transcribe the latest propaganda pronouncement and get to lunch.

The White House is saving the domestic mob enforcers for the rest of us.

HEADS UP: Via Ms. Musing, we learn that Moving Ideas is hosting an online discussion with contributors to CODEPINK's Stop the Next War Now. The chat has already started this morning; however, it goes on for several hours more. Go to Moving Ideas for more information.

In response to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling today in Raich v. Ashcroft, that the federal government can enforce federal laws prohibiting the cultivation, possession, and use of medical marijuana even in states where medical marijuana is legal under state law, the American Civil Liberties Union urged state and local governments to protect individual patients and their caregivers.

"The power of state governments to enact and enforce state medical marijuana laws is not affected by the Supreme Courts ruling," said Allen Hopper, a staff attorney with the ACLUs Drug Law Reform Project. "State laws allowing the use of medical marijuana still offer patients significant protection."

In its decision, the Court overturned the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that the federal government could not enforce federal marijuana laws against the cultivation, possession and use of medical marijuana by the plaintiffs, Angel Raich and Diane Monson. Angel Raich suffers from several conditions that cause severe, chronic pain, including an inoperable brain tumor, fibromyalgia, endometriosis, scoliosis, uterine fibroid tumors and rotator cuff syndrome. Her doctor warned the Court that she is likely to die if unable to use medical marijuana. Medical marijuana is also the only effective treatment that eliminates Diane Monsons severe back pain and spasms.

As an independent journalist living in Haiti who puts his camera between the Haitian police and demonstrators to cover this story, I am deeply disappointed with your letter because it falls short of demanding the Haitian police be investigated for documented cases of human rights abuses and extra-judicial killings. Not only does this place journalists such as myself in greater danger, but I wonder how I will explain your position to the families of the victims slaughtered by the Haitian police who are merely asking for justice and accountability? Do I tell them that Human Rights Watch agrees with the Haitian police that their loved ones are expendable because they are suspected of being members of "armed gangs claiming affiliation with former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide?" Despite the fact that it is well-documented they were shot in cold-blood during a peaceful demonstration? Do I tell them Human Rights Watch agrees with the documented tactic of the Haitian police of planting guns on the corpses of unarmed demonstrators after they kill them? If you disbelieve me then trust you own eyes and visit HaitiAction.Net: UN Accommodates Human Rights Abuses by Police in Haiti, May 8, 2005.

Look at the 35 images of the handiwork of the Haitian police with your own eyes and know that this is what you are dismissing with your half-hearted and, apparently biased, human rights work in Haiti.

Martha e-mails to note Danny Schechter's News Dissector which is "jam packed full of the usual incredible information" but she wants to spotlight an e-mail from Ted Glick that Schechter highlights:

"There is no question that former top FBI guy Mark Felt's decision to provide information to Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward in the early '70s was one important part of what led to Richard Nixon's eventual resignation from office in August of 1974. But, not surprisingly, the corporate media have left out the decisive factor which led to that result: the sentiments and the actions of the U.S. American people at the grassroots.

"From the fall of 1973 to the fall of 1974 I was one of the national coordinators of the National Campaign to impeach Nixon (NCIN). Over the course of a few short months, this effort grew to include working local contacts in 33 states and over 100 cities and towns.

"During the three months of February, March and April of 1974, we organized a national lobby-in in Washington, D.C., a national conference in Chicago and a national demonstration of 10,000 people in D.C. on April 27th hat received widespread media coverage.

"Looking back over thirty years later, it's easy to think that Nixon's resignation was a foregone conclusion once Woodward and Deep Throat hooked up and the organized cover up of widespread illegality on the part of the Nixon administration began to be revealed. But this was not the case.

"There were prominent liberals, for example, who publicly opposed impeachment on the grounds that it would be better to have a weakened Nixon in office than an empowered Gerald Ford, Nixon's Vice-President. This was the argument made by Nicholas Von Hoffman, a Washington Post columnist, in a piece published on December 26th, 1973."

About Me

We do not open attachments. Stop e-mailing them. Threats and abusive e-mail are not covered by any privacy rule. This isn't to the reporters at a certain paper (keep 'em coming, they are funny). This is for the likes of failed comics who think they can threaten via e-mails and then whine, "E-mails are supposed to be private." E-mail threats will be turned over to the FBI and they will be noted here with the names and anything I feel like quoting.
This also applies to anyone writing to complain about a friend of mine. That's not why the public account exists.